SEQUEL TO CHOICES- One Step Forward, Two Steps Back
by Heartlandforever
Summary: Sequel to my other story "Choices"- Both Amy and Ty are struggling with the fact that she will be going away for 5 months, Mallory has other problems regarding her sweet sixteen, or as she calls it a "sucky sixteen", but Amy thinks she has the perfect idea to change that, and a familiar face returns to Heartland who will rock the boat and cause one character to question her past.
1. Chapter 1- Familiar Faces

**This is a sequel to my other story ****_Choices_****, if you haven't read that, please do; everything will make a lot more**** sense.** **I don't own any characters; all rights to cbc...anyways enjoy :)**

I run my fingers through Spartans forelock and rest my head against his neck. It was only about a week ago that Eric Lamaze left with his horse Echanté, or better known as Te that's I had helped. He offered to take me on as a working student and go on the show circuit. After much thought, I had accepted, and I left in a couple months at the end of the summer. I'm really going to miss home. I will be gone for about 5 months, and although I'm excited, I don't know how I'm going to be able to leave Spartan, home and most of all Ty for such a long time. The sound of foots steps interrupts my thoughts. Mallory walks into the barn dragging her feet with a depressed expression on her face.

"Hey what's wrong?" I ask.

"Well, my 16th birthday is in 5 days and as of now my only plan is to come here and shovel poop out of Copper's stall," she says in an irritated voice. I shoot her a sympathetic look.

"Why don't you get together with you friends?" I ask putting Spartans saddle away.

"What friends?" she says, "Jake and Jamie decided to get back together and are to obsessed with each other to even care about me." She slams Copper's bridle on the hook and grabs a curry comb before letting herself into his stall. Then I have an idea that I know Lou will love.

* * *

"A surprise party?" Lou asks as she attempts to shove baby food in Katie's mouth. Katie shakes her head and seals her mouth shut. "Come on Katie it's delicious!" Lou says waving the goo around.

"Delicious?" I say, "You couldn't force me to eat that either." I say looking at the orangey slim.

"Ugh fine," Lou says throwing the spoonful of baby food in the sink. "So what were you thinking, invite all of Mallory's friends over and a bunch of other people and set it up so she comes up to the house…?"

"Yeah, whatever works. It's her sweet sixteen and I think she was really looking foreword to a party. Anyways, I have to get back to work, but I'll send you a list of stuff we're going to need and then I'll send out and e-vite to people," I say.

"Wow, look at you Miss Planner. You used to hate surprise parties," Lou says. I give her a glare and walk out of the house.

* * *

**Ty's POV:**

I hop out of my truck and walk into town headed for Maggie's Diner. I still can't believe Amy is leaving for 5 months. _What am I going to do?_ I think to myself. But I know that it's such an amazing opportunity and I'm happy for her. I'm about to open the door to the diner when I see a familiar face out of the corner of my eye. I turn my head, shocked…

**Haha...Cliffhanger, don't worry I'll update soon :) hope your liking it so far, I know the first chapter is a little short, the next one will be longer :)**


	2. Chapter 2- Rocking the Boat

"Badger?"

"Oh hey Ty. What's up?" I look at him in shock, "What, not happy to see me?" He says with a smirk.

I invite him in to Maggie's for a coffee and he starts to tell me practically his whole life story...

"Anyways, so after I graduated from Calgary School of Art, I started an internship with this old, decrepit lady who painted flowers; boring! Anyways, thankfully that's over with. So, I came here and I just signed the papers a few hours ago to rent a small store in Hudson to sell my work." I look up from my coffee,

"Wow congratulations, that's awesome man." I say. I'm proud of how far he's come since I first saw him a few years ago when he first came to Heartland.

"So, how are things at Heartland," Badger asks, "How, a...how's Mallory..."

"She's good. Amy's throwing a surprise sweet sixteen for her this Saturday..." I look up, immediately regretting that I mentioned it. He smiles.

"Sweet, consider me there. Thanks for the invite." I kick myself for saying anything. _Sh*t!_ _Why did I mention anything! Mallory is going to kill me...Amy's going to kill me!_I think to myself. Badger hops off the bar stool, throws some change for the coffee on the table and walks out of the door with a satisfied smirk. I pay Soraya for the coffee and walk out after him. He waves good bye and walks over to his car. I hop in my truck and head back to Heartland wondering what Mallory's reaction is going to be when she sees Badger on Saturday. _This is really going to rock the boat_.

* * *

**Amy's point of view:**

I'm sitting at my computer sending out evites when I hear a knock at my door.

"Amy, it's me," I hear Ty say.

"Come in!" I say. He opens then door and slips in.

"Hey," he says. I stand up and lean in for a kiss. He seems a little anxious.

"Hey, you okay?" I ask him.

"Um, yeah. You'll never guess who I saw in town today..." Ty says. _Oh gosh._I think to myself, _Blaire? Wade?..._

"Badger," he says, "Apparently he's renting a little store in Hudson to sell his work. What is Mallory going to do?"

"I don't know...as long as he doesn't find out about her party..." I say. Ty looks at me guiltily, "Tyyyyy..."

"It just slipped out, I didn't mean to, I..." he smiles "Mallory's going to kill me," he says with a laugh. I laugh and elbow him, "Good luck," I say with a smirk.

We walk down the barn together to take Spartan and Harley for a ride. After we tack up, we trot up the driveway and into the woods. After about 30min. we decide to stop and sit by the river. Ty looks a bit distant.

"Hey," I say bumping my shoulder on his, "What's wrong?" I ask. He looks at me but doesn't make eye-contact.

"Nothing," he says trying to smile. I don't believe him at all.

"Come on Ty. I know you better than that," I say. He looks at me; this time making eye-contact.

"It's nothing really. I just…I'm going to miss you. I don't know what I'm going to do being away from you for that long," he says, "I know it's the right thing for you to do and I'm excited for you, really, I am. I guess I'm just being selfish." He says looking down at his hands.

"Ty, you're not being selfish. I'm going to miss you like crazy!" I say, "And besides, you know what they say 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder.'" I say with a reassuring smile.

"Yeah, I don't really believe that," Ty says, "Being away from you just makes my heart break." I turn his head to me with my hand.

"Hey," I say, "We'll get through it. Like you said, 'we always do.'" I lean in and kiss him. At first he seems resistant but then he kisses me back like it's the last time he ever will.

**Hope you liked this chapter :) please review and tell me what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3- Blitz

**Sorry I haven't updated in so long! I've been super busy with school. Anyways, here it is :)**

The next day I walk into the kitchen and see Lou making breakfast.

"Hey, Amy, there's a new horse that just arrived; Blitz. He's in pretty rough shape," Lou says as she flips a pancake onto her plate.

"Okay, who's the owner?" I ask pouring some orange juice for myself. Lou gives me a weird look, "What?"

"Hey Amy," I hear a voice say from behind me. I turn and see Badger walking through the front door. I turn to Lou and give her a look of 'Mallory is going to kill you'.

* * *

Badger and I walk down to the barn and he starts to tell me about Blitz.

"I found him in an abandoned shed when I was sketching in the woods by Clear Water Ridge. Anyways he looked pretty malnourished, so I called a friend of mine who has a trailer and borrowed it from him. I didn't really know what to do with him so I brought him here," Badger says. We reach the barn and I see Ty and Scott examining a small 15h-ish dapple grey gelding.

"Hey," Ty says walking over to me, "I called Scott as soon as Blitz arrived. He's pretty dehydrated and skinny." I walk up the horse letting him sniff my hand. He's a little skittish, but appears to be too lethargic to react. I can see all of his ribs, and his hip bones are sticking out. You can hardly even tell his coloring because there is a thick layer of mud and dirt covering his thick coat. His mane is tangled and matted with pine needles and twigs sticking out.

"Oh my gosh," is all I can say, "Poor baby," I say stroking the gelding softly. Scott looks up from what he's doing.

"He's extremely lucky," Scott says, "He managed to void any disease; he is just extremely malnourished. I'm going to give you some dewormer. You have to make sure you check on him frequently and regulate his feed. I would start by giving him some mash or alfalfa. Ty and I can help checking up on him, but I think he has a good chance." I exhale with relief. I turn to Badger who is awkwardly standing a few feet away. He seems a little nervous ad keeps looking around; I have a pretty good guess for who he's looking for.

"Um, thanks for, you know, saving him," I say with a laugh, "I'll keep you updated on how he's doing."

"Oh, um, thanks. That would be great. I have to get back to my Mallor-galler-gallery," Badger stutter, "Thanks again Amy."

"Oh yeah, Ty told me you're starting up your own place. Congrats," I say.

"Thanks," Badger says with a smile. Then he hops in his car and drives off. He leaves just in time because as he's pulling out the driveway I see Mallory riding her bike into Heartland. Once she reaches the barn she hops down and takes her helmet off. She has a worried look on her face.

"Who was that pulling out of the driveway!?" she questions.

"Oh…just some guy dropping off an abandoned horse. Why?" I say, trying to act cool.

"Oh….nothing….he just kind off looked like….never mind," she says shaking head, "Anyways where's the horse?" I show her Blitz and she helps me set up his stall. We add extra shavings and fill his water buckets. I give him some bran mash with some herbs.

"Poor guy," Mallory says as she curry comb's the packed dirt on Blitz's coat, "How old is he?"

"Scott said he thought he was somewhere between six and eight. I can't imagine abandoning an animal. I don't understand some people," I say, shaking the thought of the fact that who ever left Blitz is still out there somewhere out of my head. Mallory walks up to the house for dinner and I walk up to Ty's loft. He's sitting on his bed with his back faced to me, studying with his text book. I sneak up behind him quietly then put my hand over his mouth and push him down on the bed. His eyes are full of such shock and fear I can't control myself. I fall on the floor dying of laughter as Ty repeatedly blinks his eyes trying to get a grip on the situation. Once he puts two and two together, he glares at me, trying to look furious, but he eventually can't contain himself and starts to laugh too. He picks me up and drops me on the bed.

"You little…..I'm trying to graduate college you know!" he says in between laughs. He pins me down and I eventually restrain my self and stop laughing.

"We should probably go up to the house for dinner," I say. Ty looks back at me with his beautiful green eyes.

"Well, you know this family; we usually eat late, so I think we still have time for….you know, studying," he says with a smirk. He leans down and kisses me; _god, I'm going to miss him, _I think. Five months…..I tense up and Ty stops and looks down at me, trying to read my face. "What's wrong?" he says, sensing my discomfort.

"Nothing," I say. I push the thought to the very back of my head. _I'll cross that bridge when I get there._ I think to myself. _Besides, I've got more important things to focus on_; I pull Ty in for a long, passionate kiss.

**Hope you liked this chapter- new update soon :) Tell me what you think so far!**


	4. Chapter 4- Surprise!

The next morning I walk down to the barn early before breakfast to check up on Blitz. "Hey boy," I say to the little dapple grey as I see his head peep out of his stall. I swing his stall door open…

"Jeez! Mallory! What are you doing here?" I exclaim. Mallory's head slowly rises. Her blonde hair is covered with hay from the bales she set up as a make shift bed. She slowly slips out of her sleeping bag.

"Why are you here?" Mallory says with a yawn. She pulls out her cell phone from her pocket, "Its 4:30," she says as she looks at her cell phone screen.

"I was just coming to check on him. Your turn; why did you stay the night with him?"

"I just wanted to make sure he was okay," she says with another yawn. Well now that you're here, I'm going home to take a shower and change," she says. I give her a ride because I feel bad making her ride her bike home, even though it's only a mile or two. She sluggishly jumps out of my truck mumbling, "I can't wait to get my license,"

Once I'm back at Heartland I see Ty's figure walking out of the front door of the barn. He throws his back pack into the front seat of his truck and turns when he sees my truck rolling in. I hop out of the truck and walk over to him.

"Morning," I say as I lean in for a kiss. He kisses me back then smiles.

"Hey," he says, "I have to go into the clinic and help Scott today, but I was wondering if you were doing anything tonight….I thought maybe we could go out to dinner or something." I smile.

"Dinner, huh? What's the occasion?" I ask wrapping my hands around his neck.

"Nothing," he replies, "I just want to spend as much time as you as I can before…." He trails off looking down.

"Hey," I say. He looks up into my eyes, "Let's not even think about that. We'll cross that bridge when we get there." He laughs a little.

"You sound like Jack," he says with a smirk. I glower at him sarcastically then kiss him again before he jumps in his truck and drives off.

After I do all my morning chores and take Spartan for a nice long rail ride I head over to Maggie's to meet up with Soraya for lunch.

"Hey, Amy!" Soraya exclaims as she walks through the kitchen door with an armful of plates. I wave back with a smile, and sit at the counter on a stool. After she serves the customer she walks over to me. After she gives me a hug she turns around to look at the clock.

"I finish in 15 minutes, so can I get you anything while you wait?" Soraya asks.

"Sure! I'll have some vegetarian chili," I say.

"Milk shake?" Soraya asks raising one eyebrow. I smile.

"You know me too well," I say with a laugh, "Chocolate?"

"Absolutely," Soraya says as she walks over to the blender. After I finish eating and Soraya is done with work, she turns to me.

"So what do you want to do?" she asks.

"Well….Mallory's birthday is tomorrow and I still need to get her a gift, so would you mind shopping with me?" I reply.

"Shopping? Come on Amy, you know how much I hate doing that." Soraya replies sarcastically.

"I know it's a huge imposition…" I say playing along. Soraya laughs.

"Come on," she says pulling me out the door.

I buy Mallory a new halter for Copper that has a pretty blue and green pattern and a nice riding shirt, and Soraya buys her _Hey Rosetta_'s new album at the CD store. After shopping we say good bye and I drive back to Heartland. A smile crosses my face when I remember Ty and I's plans for tonight. Once I get back to Heartland I take a quick shower and pick out my outfit. As I'm attempting to find a 'non-horsey' outfit in my closet I hear a knock and see Lou walk in holding something behind her back.

"Ty told me about your plans tonight," Lou says trying to hold back a smile. I roll my eyes waiting for the life lecture to begin, but instead Lou pulls something out from behind her back. She holds a beautiful, baby blue colored, one shoulder chiffon dress.

"It's beautiful!" I say to Lou as she hands it to me.

"Peter got it for me when we were in Dubai and I thought it would look pretty on you," she says with a smile.

"Are you sure its okay if I borrow it?" I ask her.

"Yes! It's fine. Besides, there is no way I'm letting you walk out of this house in blue jeans and boots," she says. I ignore her snide remark and thank her. I carefully put on the dress and look in the mirror. The dress fits perfectly and brings out my big, blue eyes. I blow-dry my hair and put on a little more make up that usual. I curl a few strands of my hair, put on a pair of black pumps, and grab my purse before taking one more final look in the mirror. I walk into the mirror and see Jack and Lisa sitting on the couch together. They both turn around at the sound of my heels clanking against the wooden floors.

"Jeez. Where are you going," Grandpa says as he walks over to me. I'm almost as tall as him with my heels on. He looks down at my feet.

"How do you walk in those things?" he asks referring to my pumps.

"Ignore him Amy," Lisa says walking up behind him, "You look beautiful. Ty will love your dress." Grandpa looks back to me.

"Ah, right your date with Ty," he says emphasizing the word 'date'.

"That's right," I say, "And hopefully he will appreciate my outfit," I say emphasizing the 'he'. Jack smiles.

"I'm just kidding you look great; very grown up." I smile back and wave good-bye before walking out of the house. I walk down to the barn to find Ty. I walk over the Blitz's stall and stoke his face, massaging it using "T-Touch". I hear Ty walk down the loft stairs.

"Amy?" he says as he reaches the last step. I turn around just as a gust of wind blows, making my hair blow back just like in the movies; it's so cliché, but at the same time perfect. He walks up to me.

"You look beautiful," he says, pulling me in for a long kiss. After we break I smile.

"So do you," I say smiling. He puts his hand around my waist and walks me to his truck.

After dinner we pull back into Heartland and he stops the car.

"I had a lot of fu tonight," he says turning to me.

"Me too," I reply. After we kiss one last time, I head back into the house with a smile on my face that I can't get rid of no matter how hard I try.

The next morning I finish my morning chore quickly and decide to jump Spartan over a few small jumps before heading back up to the house. I'm eating lunch when I see Lou walking into the house with about as many bags around her arms as possible. She sets them down on the counter with a thud. She exhales exasperated. She pulls a pad of paper out of her pocket and grabs a pen from the desk.

"Okay! So I have the streamers, balloons, cake mix, chips, salsa, soda, Lisa's making the chili…what else…" she says taping the pen against the pad, "Right plastic cups and plates, napkins and silverware." I take the last bite of my sandwich, and help Lou set everything up. It's about 4:00pm by the time we finish decorating and baking. Lisa pulls in to Heartland and Lou and I go out to help her carry stuff in.

"I made some pie, too," Lisa says as she pulls stuff out of her trunk.

"Great!" Lou says. She turns to me, "This was a great idea Amy."

"Thanks," I reply. We manage to get everything into the kitchen and set the stuff out with the other food. I go back to my room to shower and change. Once I'm finished getting ready, I walk back into the kitchen and look at the clock.

"It's 5:15 right now, and people said they would be getting here around 5:30," I say to Grandpa, Lou, Lisa and Ty who are sitting in the living room. About 30minutes later everyone has arrived and parked their cars behind the house and barn. I head out to pick up Mallory. Lou called her to ask her to babysit and said I would pick her up in 5 minutes. I pull up to Mallory's house and see her waiting at the front door with an annoyed look on her face. She hops into the car and I listen to her rant for 5 dreadful minutes about how it's her birthday how terrible Lou is to make her work tonight. We pull into the drive way and Mallory jumps out of the truck. She walks up to the front door dragging her feet as I follow behind her. She swings the door open and walks into the kitchen just as the lights turn on and tons of people pop out from different hiding places,

"SURPRISE!"

**I hope you're liking the story so far! Please review and tell me what you think :)**


	5. Chapter 5- Past and Present

Mallory is shocked at first, but then a smile crosses her face when she sees the balloons, streamers and big sign that says 'Sweet Sixteen!' After everyone laughs and walks over to give her a hug, Ty and I wander off to sit on the couch together. We just sit eating our chili; enjoying the silence for a little while.

"Thank you so much Amy!" I hear Mallory say as she walks up behind me. I stand up and give her a hug,Tthis is the best birthday I've ever had."

I smile, "No problem. You deserve it," I say.  
"Can I go check on Blitz?" Mallory asks.  
"Sure," I reply. Over the past few days she has become very fond of the little gelding. She walks back into the kitchen and grabs a carrot from the fridge before heading down to the barn. I set my chili down on the coffee table, and cuddle in to Ty on the couch.

* * *

**Mallory's point of view**

I make my way down the the barn, unable to wipe the smile off my face._ No one can ruin my mood right now,_ I think to myself.Just then as I reach the barn I see a figure with their back faced to me, standing by Blitz's stall.  
"Egm, excuse me? Who are you?" I demand. The person turns around and I gasp when I see their face.  
"Badger!?"

He tries to smile awkwardly, "Hey Mallory...um happy birthday," he replies.

"What the hell are you doing here!?" I ask. I'm furious now, _who does he think he is!? Showing up at my birthday party!_  
"Look, Mallory, I know this looks bad..."  
"Looks bad!?" I interrupt, "Leaving for almost a year, losing contact and then showing up out of the blue at my sweet sixteen is what you call 'looking bad'!" i yell.  
"Mallory! I'm sorry okay...what do you want me to say?"  
"You don't have to say anything, because either way I'm not listening!" I say, on the verge of tears._ Who the hell does he think he is?_ I liked him, maybe even more than liked him, then he leaves me at the end of the summer with just a kiss good bye. No texts or calls after that; I'm shaking with rage. I turn to walk away, then I feel a hand grab my arm from behind me and spin me around. Before I know what's happening I feel Badger press his lips against mine and kiss me. I kiss him back passionately, following my heart and ignoring my brain reminding me about how much of a jerk he can be. At this moment, I don't care about anything else but the boy that I fell for a couple of summers ago.

* * *

**Amy's point of view**

It's been a while since Mallory went down to the barn. I turn to Ty.

"I'm going to go find Mallory and tell her to come up to the house; she still has to open presets and have cake," I say getting off the couch.

"Okay," Ty says pulling he's arm off my shoulder. I walk down to the barn wondering what Mallory could possibly be doing. I reach the barn and see Badger and Mallory quickly pulling away from each other at the sound of my foot steps.

"Oh. Um...sorry..." I say awkwardly, I turn to Mallory, "Party's in the house..." I say with a bit of a smirk.

"Um, yeah I'll be right up...I was just checking on Blitz..." she says walking over to his stall and feeding him the carrot that she still hadn't given him. I nod my head.

"Righhhhtttt. Okay well don't take to long you still have to open your presents and have cake."

"Okay, I'll be up in a sec," Mallory says. I let out a little laugh and shake my head as I turn to go, _I don't think I'll ever understand those two,_ I think to myself as I walk up to the house.

* * *

Mallory comes up to the house a few minutes later with Badger right behind her. Everyone seems a little taken a back at the sight of him. Grandpa shakes his hand and says 'Welcome back', he's always liked him. Jake is a different story; his face is priceless, but he has Jamie so he just shifts uncomfortably and moves closer to her. Mallory loves all of her presents and people start to leave a little while after we sing 'happy birthday' and have desert. A little while later everyone has left and Ty and I are sitting up on the bed his loft. I hear Badger and Mallory down stairs:

"Hey what's on Blitz's neck?" Mallory asks, "Is that a bow? What the heck?"

"Happy birthday!" Badger exclaims laughing.

"What! Are you joking! How..."

"I was the one who brought him to Amy; I found him in an abandoned shed. Amy said she thought he might have some warmblood in him, and I know you were thinking of getting back into showjumping, so I was thinking, once he puts on some weight he'll be the perfect jumper; you can retrain him," Badger says.

"Thank you so much!" Mallory exclaims. She leans in and kisses him, then I hear the stall do open and hear her laughing and hugging Blitz.

I smile, _they're pretty cute together,_ I think to myself. I cuddle up into Ty's arms.

"I love you," I say looking up into his eyes.

"I love you too," he smiles, then leans down and kisses me. _What are you doing Amy?_ I think to myself. _You're going to leave this for five months?_


	6. Chapter 6- What's 5 months?

**_Two months later_**

I wake up early this morning and walk over to my bedroom window, surveying the place I call home. A tear threatens in the corner of my eye but I quickly wipe it away. _I'm going to miss this place so much,_ I think to myself. I sigh, _Come on Amy, you can be away from this for 5 months...it's no biggy. _But I quickly lose my fake wave of confidence when I think about being away from Ty for 5 months. I have a sudden urge to see him, hear his voice, and feel his arms wrap around me. I quickly get dressed and shovel some cereal into my mouth before jogging down the the barn. It's still pretty early, so Ty is still asleep. I slowly open the door and whisper his name.

"Ty," no response, "Ty!" I walk over to the side of his bed and poke him in the shoulder. He wakes with a start. Once he sees my face he sifhs and yawns.

"What time is it?" He mumbles, yawning again.

"It's early...I just...wanted to see you..." I say looking down at my feet.

"Hey," Ty says, gently pulling me towards him. I get under the covers with him and he pulls me into a close embrace. "It's going to be just fine, you know," he says playing my my long blond hair.

"I know," I reply, leaning in for a kiss.

* * *

A couple hours later I decide to take Spartan for a ride after Ty heads to work. Swing my leg onto his ever familiar back and cluck him into a trot. I canter along the trails with out even thinking. I know the trails like the back of my hand; it's muscle memory. I take in the beautiful view;something that I will never get sick of. I bend down and give Spartan a pat on the neck before turning him around and pushing him into a full gallop across the plains I yell with joy,

"Wooh Hoo!" I yell laughing; one hand on the reins and On on my hat keeping it from flying off. I pull him up when I reach the driveway and let him walk. Once I reach the barn I slide off and untack Spartan, then turn him out and I clean my tack. While walking up to the house for some lunch, I hear my phone ringing. I pull it out of the pocket and look at the screen; **_Incoming call from:_**_ Eric Lamaze. _ I answer the phone. Eric goes over the plan me about the plan with me; I'm going to meet him at his barn which is about 2 hours away, then stay at his barn for about 1 week before heading down to the states in Ocala, Florida for the winter circuit. I get butterflies of excitement just thinking about the fun I'm going to have.

"So when do you want me to arrive at your barn," I ask. There's a short pause,

"How about next week? Monday?" Eric says. My stomach drops. That's in 6 days. I gulp,

"Um, ok. Yeah, that sounds good," I say forcing a smile.

"Great! See you then!" Eric replies.

"Okay, bye! Thanks again," after we hang up I walk up to the house. I sigh, _6 more days of my job, __6 more days of riding Spartan, and_ _6 more days of Ty._

* * *

I can't believe you're leaving in less than a week!" Lou exclaims over the dinner table. She and Lisa seems to be the only one who's super excited for me.

"It's going to be such a great experience for you, Amy," Lisa chims in, "And remember, don't let any snobby horse show people get under your skin," Lisa says laughing. I force a smile.

"I won't," I say, pushing around the mashed potatoes on my plate. I don't have much of an appetite ate the moment; infact, I'm pretty much a basket of nerves right now. I look over at Grandpa; he smiles at me when he catches my eye, but he looks a bit distant. I turn to look at Ty who is making a valiant effort to look supportive and happy. I look back down at my plate. _Get over it Amy._ I say to myself, _what's a few months_.


	7. Chapter 7- Piece of Cake

The next few days feel like the fastest week of my life, and before I know it, it's the day before I leave. I wake up extra early, mainly because I can't sleep and walk down to the barn with two apples in my hand; one for me and one for Spartan. I reach the barn and see Mallory and Badger already starting morning chores.

"Hey, what are you two doing?" I ask confused. Mallory looks up from the stall and leans against her pitchfork,

"Well, as much as you don't want to believe it, your leaving tomorrow so this is your last day here for…..a while, so Badger took the day off to help me with chores so you can take the day off; pack some more, go out to lunch, ride, whatever," Mallory says with a smile. It's so weird when she says something with out a sarcastic remark at the end. To be honest, all I really want to do is do my usual routine; I don't want to make a big deal out of anything, but Mallory's right, I should pack some more and spend time with Spartan….and Ty. After a long pause I look back at Mallory and Badger.

"Okay," I say resistently, "I guess I'll take Spartan for a ride," I say, grabbing his halter and letting myself into his stall, "Thanks."

"No problem," Badger and Mallory say before resuming there mucking. I lead Spartan out of his stall and feel a pair of arms wrap around me from behind.

"Hey going for a ride?" Ty says. I smile and turn around before kissing him sweetly. You're not going to invite me?" Ty says, pretending to look hurt.

"I thought you had work today?" I say skeptically. Ty grins.

" No; I took the whole day off so we could spend time together," he says before kissing me again. "So, can I come?"

"Hmmmmm, I don't know. I guess so…but what's in it for me? You're going to have to give me something in return," I say smirking.

"Anything you want," Ty says with a simper.

* * *

After we tack up Spartan and Harley we head out for the trails. I want this trail ride to last for as long as possible, so we just walk side by side, holding hands. When we come to the huge field Ty drops my hand and picks up his reins.

"Race-ya to the other end!" he says before kicking Harley into a canter.

"Hey!" I yell, "Unfair start!" I laugh and kick Spartan into a fast gallop. Soon we're galloping, no more like flying across the grassy plains, laughing as we urge our horses foreword. I pull ahead of Ty and yell "See ya!" We reach the end of the field and let our horses, who are now out of breath walk. We walk the rest of the way until we reach Heartland. I hop off Spartan and untack him before letting him out into his paddock. Ty does the same with Harley then walks over to me and puts his arm around my shoulder.

"What now?" he asks. I sigh.

"Well I promised Soraya that I'd have lunch with her before I left…so want to head over to Maggie's with me?" I say looking up at him.

"Of course I do," he says with a smile before kissing me again.

* * *

After we eat lunch with Soraya, we drive back to the house where I see Lisa's Porsche in the parked in driveway. We walk into the house and see Grandpa carrying a small suitcase from his room to the kitchen. I look at him, then the suitcase, then back up to him.

"Going somewhere, Grandpa?" I ask holding back my smile.

"Look I know the timing's weird, but Lisa has a reservation at this fancy resort and spa and she made me feel bad about cancelling so I promised I'd go with her," Grandpa says with a sigh. Just then Lisa walks into the kitchen,

"Oh come on Jack, you're going to have tons of fun," she says walking up from behind him. Grandpa manages a smile then walks out the door to put his suitcase in the car. "Besides, I thought you two would like some alone time" Lisa says, looking at Ty and I. I look at Ty then back to Lisa and smile. A couple hours later, Lisa manages to drag Grandpa into the car and out of the driveway. I turn back to Ty and wrap my hands around his neck before kissing him passionately. It's now about 6:30pm so Ty decides to make me dinner. Lou, Peter and Katie go out for "family" dinner so Ty and I are alone. After dinner we walk down to the barn together. Ty wraps his arm around my waist and leads me down and into the barn. I stop at Spartans stall and give him a carrot that I had stuffed in my pocket. I moved on the Blitz's stall and gave him one too.

"He's really coming along great," Ty says, referring to Blitz.

"Yeah, Mallory is doing a great job with him. She said she's going to try cantering soon, since he's perfected his walk a trot and doesn't try to buck anymore," I reply. We walk up the stairs to Ty's loft and I take my jean jacket off and sit down on Ty's bed. He quietly shuts the door before joining me. His lips meet mine and I kiss him feverishly. He takes of his t-shirt before positioning him self over me and kissing me again. He unbuttons my pink plaid shirt and I shimmy out of it before meeting his lips again.

"I love you," I whisper into his ear.

"I love you too," he replies then he wraps his arms behind my bare back, and kisses me softly on the neck. I close my eyes and take it all in. The last night of the life I know. The last night at home. The last night with Ty….my body stiffens at the thought and Ty stops and looks at me.

"What's wrong?" he says concerned. I shake my head.

"Nothing," I reply. I let go of everything and melt into Ty's body. Tonight, I don't care about anything or anyone else besides the guy I'm in love with.

* * *

The next morning, I blink my eyes as the sun blares through the window of Ty's loft. I turn to look at Ty and smile, thinking about last night. I slowly slip out of the covers, careful not to wake up Ty and grab my clothes from the floor. I quickly get dressed and sneak out. It's about 5 in the morning, so hopefully I can sneak back to the house before Lou and Peter wake up. I reach the house and tip toe to my bedroom. Once I've reached safety, I curl up under the covers of my bed and try to get some extra sleep; which I could really use. A couple hours later I wake up again. It's now 9, so I hop out of bed and take a shower before getting dressed. I walk into the kitchen and see Lou making breakfast.

"Good morning," she chimes, "Eggs?" She asks holding out a plate for me.

"Sure, thanks," I reply pouring myself a glass of orange juice.

"Late night last night?" Lou asks with a smirk. I give her a look, and she just smiles and doesn't ask any further questions. _I can't believe I leave today, _I think to myself, sipping my orange juice. I hear the screen door slam and Ty saunters in with a yawn. He smiles when he sees me.

"Good morning," he says walking over to the coffee machine. After breakfast I finish packing everything up and lug my enormous suitcase into the kitchen. I have pretty much cleaned my closet empty. I'm still a little nervous but mostly excited now. Ty loads my bag into his truck and helps load my saddle and show gear in too. I walk back down to the barn just as Grandpa and Lisa pull in. I say good bye to Spartan and give him a big hug before walking up to the house. Soon Mallory and Badger arrive to see me off as well. We are all in the drive way; Lou, Peter, Katie, Grandpa, Lisa, Mallory, Badger, Ty and I. I hold back my tears and hug everyone before jumping into Ty's truck. I wave good bye through the window as we pull out of the place I call home.

* * *

About two hours later we pull into Eric's Stables. The driveway is lined on either side with big maple trees and there are huge field where horse are grazing on either side. My heart starts to race with excitement; it's the most amazing barn I have ever seen. Ty pulls up to where all of the other cars are parked and stops the engine. We hop out of the car and I see Eric walking over towards us.

"Amy! So good to see you again!" he exclaims. We are so excited to have you here."

I smile and reply, "I'm so happy to be here." Eric shows us around his facility which is massive then we walk back to the car.

"Well, I'll let you two say good-bye," Eric says, "and I'll meet you in the tack room," he says to me.

"Okay," I reply, "Thanks." I turn to Ty. This is the moment I've been dreading. I look up at him and fall into his arms. I force myself not to cry but I feel tears flooding to my eyes. I hastily wipe them away and pull him in for one more, long kiss. He picks up my hand and fiddles with my promise ring then looks into my eyes.

"I love you," he says.

"I love you too," I say fighting tears. I pick up my bags and watch as Ty gets into his truck.

"I'll see you soon," He says smiling. "We can do five months right?"

"Piece of cake," I say smiling back. Then I watch as his blue truck gets smaller and smaller down the long driveway. Once the tiny speck disappears I turn around with my bags in my hand and walk into the barn; ready for my new life.

**Hope you liked it! Please review and tell me your thoughts :)**


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